A second TUF champion added to fight at UFC 171

Julianna Pena vs Jessica Andrade set to battle at UFC 171

by Ben Heather @benheather

After the recent announcement that the TUF 17 champ Kelvin Gastelum will face Rick Story at UFC 171 it has today been announced that he will be joined by the TUF 18 champ Julianna Pena will also fight on the card.

The first ever female TUF champion. Julianna Pena (5-2 MMA 1-0 UFC) is set to face Jessica Andrade (10-3 MMA 1-1 UFC) in her first UFC fight outside of the ultimate fighter tournament. Pena won the most recent series of The Ultimate by defeating Jessica Rakoczy by first round TKO after coming in to the tournament as team Tate's number 1 pick.

Her opponent at UFC 171 Jessica Andrade is very familiar to the UK fans after her one sided victory in her most recent fight against Rosi Sexton at UFC Fight Night Machida vs Munoz in Manchester this past October. In that fight she showcased her skills as a great martial artist, at just 22 and if it was not for the heart and determination of Rosi Sexton she would have won by TKO. I believe if she put the beating she did that night on anybody else, other than Rosi Sexton she would have been able to finish that fight but not that night in Rosi's hometown. Before that Andrade lost via TKO to Liz Carmouche in her UFC debut.

UFC 171 is headlined by the battle for the vacant UFC Welterweight Title between Johny Hendricks and Robbie Lawler.

Rosi Sexton vs Jessica Andrade Scheduled For Manchester

Manchester Gets The UK's First Ever UFC Women's Bout

By Tommy Strong @strong_tea

UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester will see England hold its first ever woman's UFC bantamweight bout when French born - Brit Rosi Sexton faces Jessica Andrade on the 26th October 2013.

Rosi made her UFC debut in June at UFC 161, when she faced Alexis Davis losing in a back and forth battle via unanimous decision. Rosi (13-3) isn't getting any younger and at the age of 36 will be eager to put one over her much younger opponent in Andrade. With the British crowd behind her she will have the home town advantage come October.

Brazilian Jessica Andrade (9-3) who is only 21, made her pro debut only 2 years ago but has been very active with 12 fights in just under 2 years. Andrade made her UFC debut in July when she fought Liz Camouche, losing in the 2nd round via TKO.

With both fighters looking to get back in the winning column the fans could be in for a real treat here.

UFC Manchester will see the much anticipated return of Michael "The Count" Bisping to the UK in a fight which could decide who will be the next number one contender when he takes on Mark Munoz in a middleweight battle.

Rosi Sexton discusses being a part of the Women in Combat Sports Seminar at the UK MMA Expo

Rosi Sexton chats to Kingdom MMA about being a part of the women in combat sports seminar at the UK MMA Expo

by Ben Heather @benheather

The UK MMA Expo is now less than a week away. The Expo which is taking place in Manchester will happen this weekend July 20th -21st. As part of the expo not only will you be able to meet some of the best UK MMA fighters but you can also train with some of them too. For all the details on the expo go to www.ukmmaexpo.co.uk

We have been bringing you some interviews with these fighters. The fighters will be discussing what they will be doing in each of the seminars and also how they believe the UK MMA Expo can help to promote the sport of MMA in the UK. We all love MMA and know how great a sport it is and hopefully the UK MMA Expo will go a long to to educating more people in the UK. Guys who come along as a casual fan or with a friend who loves MMA and go away wanting to know more about it, watch a live event or even decide that they would like to take it up as a hobby.

We have already interviewed Rob Sinclair, Jo Jo Calderwood, Che Mills, Jimi Manuwa and Ross Pearson and now in the latest interview of the series I caught up with UFC female bantamweight fighter Rosi Sexton to discuss her seminar at the UK MMA Expo.

Rosi makes up part of a panel in a seminar called "Women In Combat Sports" which takes place on the 21st July at 2pm. That seminar is free to go and watch and is a one hour Q&A seminar which includes Helen Currie the 1st UK Female BJJ Black belt, Jo Jo Calderwood who is undefeated and fights for Invicta FC and finally Rosi Sexton the first UK women to fight for the UFC. Rosi is also a former Cage Warriors Champion. I recently asked her how she felt to be part of such a great panel for the seminar.

"I think in the UK we have a lot of talent when it comes to women in combat sports, and this is a great opportunity to celebrate that. I've got a lot of respect for all the other women on the panel - they've each achieved a huge amount within their sport, and have a lot of technical knowledge and experience. I'm looking forward to a really interesting exchange of ideas."

I know a lot of your UK fans are excited at the prospect of being able to see you at the seminar and potentially meet you too, are you excited about meeting your fans at the expo?

"I've had a lot of encouragement and appreciation from the MMA community and the fans here in the UK, throughout my career, but especially before and after my recent UFC fight. I'm always excited to meet those who have supported me!"

Finally we spoke about what holding the seminar at the UK MMA Expo means to Rosi and how in her opinion the UK MMA Expo is helping the sport of MMA in the UK as well as female fighters.

"For a long time, there were few women involved in combat sports, and it was easy to feel isolated in a male dominated environment. Now more and more women are starting to develop an interest, and want to take part - which is fantastic. This is a great opportunity both for women who are new to the sport who would like to find out more and those who've been training a while who might have their own experiences to share, or questions about taking it to the next level." 

So that's what Rosi Sexton thinks about being in her seminar as well as her opinion on the UK MMA Expo. Remember Rosi is part of the Women in Combat Sports Q&A Seminar on Sunday 21st July at 2pm.

Jo Jo Calderwood discusses being a part of the Women in Combat Sports Seminar at the UK MMA Expo

Jo Jo Calderwood chats to Kingdom MMA about being a part of the women in combat sports seminar at the UK MMA Expo

by Ben Heather @benheather

The UK MMA Expo is now only a week away. The Expo which is taking place in Manchester will happen the weekend of July 20th -21st. As part of the expo not only will you be able to meet some of the best UK MMA fighters but you can also train with some of them too. For all the details on the expo go to www.ukmmaexpo.co.uk

Kingdom will be bringing you some interviews with these fighters. The fighters will be discussing what they will be doing in each of the seminars and also how they believe the UK MMA Expo can help to promote the sport of MMA in the UK. We all love MMA and know how great a sport it is and hopefully the UK MMA Expo will go a long to to educating more people in the UK. Guys who come along as a casual fan or with a friend who loves MMA and go away wanting to know more about it, watch a live event or even decide that they would like to take it up as a hobby.

Next up in our series of interviews is Jo Jo Calderwood. Jo Jo has fought for some of the top MMA promotions including Cage Warriors and Invicta who she is signed to now on a long term deal. Jo Jo follows on from Rob Sinclair in our interviews discussing the seminar in which she is a part of at the UK MMA Expo.

Jo Jo makes up part of a panel in a seminar called "Women In Combat Sports" which takes place on the 21st July at 2pm. That seminar is free to go and watch and is a one hour Q&A seminar which includes Julie Kitchen 14x World Muay Thai Champ, Helen Currie 1st UK Female BJJ Black belt, Rosi Sexton the first UK women to fight for the UFC and former Cage Warriors Champion and of course Jo Jo Calderwood. Yesterday I asked her how she felt to be part of such a great panel for the seminar.

"I was really excited to be asked, I was going down to it anyway for the British no gi competition so this is like a bonus. I feel privileged to be included in a group with people I look up to like Rosi, Julie Kitchen and Helen Currie."

I know a lot of your UK fans are excited at the prospect of being able to see you at the seminar and potentially meet you too, are you excited about meeting your fans at the expo?

"Yeah everyone back home are really supportive and I'm always very humble to have their support... The UK MMA Expo will be a great experience and my way of getting to say thanks in person to the people."

Finally we spoke about what holding the seminar at the UK MMA Expo means to Jo Jo and how in her opinion the UK MMA Expo is helping the sport of MMA in the UK as well as female fighters.

"Hopefully the UK MMA Expo will open a lot of people's eyes to the real side of UK MMA  its not like how a lot of people perceive it. The last few years the level of professionalism in the sport has been raised thanks to stuff like the safe MMA programme. Hopefully it shows people that MMA is for everyone men, woman and kids and that it's here to stay." 

So that's what Jo Jo Calderwood thinks about being in her seminar as well as her opinion on the UK MMA Expo. Remember Jo Jo is part of the Women in Combat Sports Q&A Seminar on Sunday 21st July at 2pm and as she said she will also be taking part in the no gi competition so anyone going can see her in action on the day.

If you want to read our previous interview with Rob Sinclair about his Striking Against Submissions seminar then click here

Rosi Sexton signing for the UFC "still doesn't feel real"

Kingdom MMA Exclusive Interview with Rosi Sexton

by John Haigh @JohnBJayHaigh

In the last week it was announced that the UFC had signed the first British women to the women’s bantamweight roster. That women is Dr Rosi Sexton.

Having fought all over Europe and North America with only two defeats in her 15 fight professional career, she is considered one of the best female bantamweights in the world. Rosi is also a registered osteopath and continues to work as well as compete in MMA.

On Thursday 11th April Rosi was kind enough to answer a few questions for Kingdom MMA.

John: First of all how did the deal come about, had it been on the cards for a while or did it come out of the blue?
Sexton: It's something I discussed with my coach a couple of months back. We decided to make a push for the UFC. It's always been a dream of mine, and until recently I never really thought they would have a women's division in time for me. So when the opportunity came up, I knew I had to give it my best shot.
The actual offer itself all happened very quickly though. I got the call from my manager on Wednesday lunchtime, and 24 hours later it was all signed. It's still not quite sunk in yet!

John: How does it feel to be the first British women to be signed by the UFC and what does it mean to you to be part of UK MMA history?
Sexton: It's incredible - it still doesn't feel real! I'm excited to have this opportunity.

John: Do you think your signing will open the flood gates for other British women into the UFC women’s division?
Sexton: I hope so. There are some very talented up and coming female fighters in Britain, and it would be great to see them make it to the UFC.

John: If you hadn't signed with the UFC would you have tried out for this season of TUF?
Sexton: That wouldn't have been possible, as there's no way I'd be able to leave my son for 6 weeks. I did consider it, but it wouldn't have been fair to him.

John: Now you’re a UFC fighter do you see yourself fighting more often or continuing as you do now fighting and practising as an osteopath?
Sexton: I'm still working as an osteopath. It's a job that enables me to be flexible, so it fits well with my training time. I'm not looking past this fight at the moment - we'll see what happens in the future. I love my job though, so I certainly won't be giving it up altogether.

John: You’ll be fighting at 135lbs in the UFC, does that make training for this fight any harder going up a weight class?
Sexton: I'm never going to be the biggest fighter at 135, so I expect to be giving up a bit of weight. At the same time, not having to worry about a big weight cut means that I'm able to train harder in the run up to the fight, and I can concentrate on eating for performance. I'm planning to make the most of that!

John: What’s your view on your opponent Alexis Davis, seems to be a very good match up?
Sexton: She's a very good grappler, and I'm expecting a tough fight!

John: How’s the training camp going, are you going to train as you have done in the past or will you be doing anything specific for this fight?
Sexton: Every fight is unique, and we generally plan the fight camp depending on the opponent and the game plan.

John: Is there anybody in particular you would like to fight?
Sexton: I'm just happy to be fighting in the UFC. There are some great fighters in that division - I'll take who they throw at me!

John: As a fan who is your favourite fighter?
Sexton: It's hard to pick just one favourite, but I'm a big fan of Frankie Edgar.

John: If you could fight anywhere in the world where would it be and why?
Sexton: I'd love to fight close to home. Either Manchester or Liverpool would be amazing.

John: Finally is there any sponsors or training partners you would like to thank?
Sexton: Yep! All my coaches and training partners - Paul Rimmer, Peter Irving, Danny Withington, Steve Campbell, Mo Haghighatdoust, the guys and girls at Next Generation, Sean and Z at Strength and Performance, Tim Budd at Global Therapies.

My management - Graham Boylan and Ian Dean at Intensiti FM.

PhD Nutrition have sponsored me for over 6 years now, and looked after me all the way here. Scramble are also very good to me!

All my friends and family who help me out, and put up with me while I'm training for a fight!

Thanks from everyone at Kingdom MMA for taking the time to answer some questions and we are looking forward to the fight on June 15th at UFC 161.